August 2017 Newsletter

Cruise ship season is now in full swing! This year, Nunavut welcomes 12 cruise ships in 13 communities, with a total of 52 scheduled community visits. 4,972passengers will visit Nunavut this summer, up from 4,814 last year. Our member operators – Adventure Canada, Crystal Cruises, One Ocean Expeditions and Students On Ice will all be back to host an unforgettable experience for their clients.

For a full list of cruise ships set to visit Nunavut this year, including dates and ports of call, check out the Government of Nunavut’s Master Cruise Ship Itinerary.

Here are some of the noteworthy voyages of this year’s season:

The Crystal Serenity Returns!

For the second year in a row, the Crystal Serenity will make its way through the Northwest Passage during its month-long voyage from Anchorage to New York City. The ship will visit Cambridge Bay on August 28th and Pond Inlet on September 3rd.

The communities have been busy preparing for the return of the massive ship and its estimated 1,000 passengers. Crystal Cruises has worked closely with both communities to organize a variety of activities for its passengers, including arts and crafts sales, land excursions, cultural performances and more.

A diverse group of remarkable Canadians was invited on board, including scientists, artists, Indigenous Elders, historians, community leaders, youth, journalists and educators. The group will explore four key themes on their journey: Diversity and Inclusion, Reconciliation, Youth Engagement and the Environment.

The journey began on June 1 and ends on October 28th in Victoria, B.C. The ship will visit eight Nunavut communities, including Iqaluit, Qikiqtarjuaq, Clyde River, Pond Inlet, Resolute, Gjoa Haven, Cambridge Bay and Kugluktuk.

In partnership with Parks Canada, Adventure Canada is taking its clients on a special voyage this September on board the Ocean Endeavour. The ship departs from Kugluktuk and makes its way to the HMS Erebus National Historic Site, where passengers will have the chance to interact with the underwater archaeology team as they are working! A live feed means passengers will be witnessing new discoveries and receiving interpretation as it unfolds.

The ship will then explore Qausuittuq, Simirlik and Auyuittuq National Parksto experience the landscape, history and wildlife in the company of Parks Canada experts. Passengers will also visit the communities of Gjoa Haven and Pond Inlet to experience Inuit culture in Nunavut before journeying to the ship’s final destination in Greenland.

How To Get Involved in Cruise Tourism

Did you know that cruise-based travellers make up a significant portion of Nunavut’s tourist population? According to the 2015 Visitor Exit Survey, cruise operators brought in 16% of visitors to Nunavut in 2015, second only to business travellers.

In 2017, an estimated 4,600 cruise passengers will stop in 12 Nunavut communities. This means lots of opportunity for communities to benefit economically – selling arts and crafts, providing outfitting services, local transportation and ground support services, putting together cultural experiences, and much more.

The cruise industry is a fast-growing sub-sector of tourism in Nunavut and there are many ways for Nunavummiut to get involved:

Work on a cruise ship: Many cruise ship operators seek seasonal Inuit staff to work on their ships in roles such as cultural interpreters, bear monitors and zodiac drivers. Contact us to find out how to get connected with potential cruise operator employers.

Ground support: Cruise operators need a variety of services from the community once they arrive: transportation, logistics, and on-the-ground activities such as town tours and land excursions are all important for a successful visit. Talk to your hamlet office to find out who is in charge of coordinating cruise ship visits to find out how you can get involved!

Cultural Experiences: Purchasing arts & crafts and experiencing Inuit culture are the things that tourists look forward to most when they visit a community. You don’t need to work in tourism full-time in order to participate. If you are an artist, performer, or would like to share your culture in another way, your talents will be greatly appreciated when visitors arrive!

Need training? Whether you’re looking for training for yourself, your employees or your entire community, help is out there. Contact us to tell us what you need and we’ll do our best to make it happen!

Want to learn more?
If you’d like more information about marine tourism development in Nunavut, check out the Marine Tourism Management Plan to learn how the Government of Nunavut and its partners and stakeholders are preparing for growth in this sector.

Call for Nominations – Nunavut Tourism Board of Directors

It’s that time of year again! Nunavut Tourism’s Annual General Meeting is coming up Saturday, October 21st and there are six (6) Board of Directors positions up for election.

As in previous years, the elections will take place before the AGM with the help of an electronic voting system.

The following one-year term positions are up for election. To nominate yourself or another member, complete the nomination form that has been emailed to you and return it by email or fax it to (867) 979-1261.

We strongly encourage all members to participate in both the nomination and voting process to ensure that our elected Board represents the needs and interests of our membership. If you have any questions, please email me at any time at or call toll-free 1-866-687-8233.

Join Indigenous tourism operators and experts from around the world for two days of sharing best practices, networking, breakout sessions, keynote presentations and local cultural experiences. This is an annual tourism industry event for everyone involved in Indigenous tourism that is not to be missed.

Nunavut Tourism will once again be attending, and we will be applying for funding for beneficiary members to attend with us. If you are interested in joining us, please send us an email no later than Friday, September 15thin order to give us enough time to secure funding. Hope to see you there!

Upcoming Projects: New Website and Brand

Two of this year’s biggest projects here at Nunavut Tourism are the development of a brand new member-focused website, as well as a refresh of our current brand. The recent change in Nunavut Tourism’s mandate to focus exclusively on serving our membership has presented a timely opportunity to develop a website that best serves the needs of our members, and a brand best reflects our role as the territory’s tourism industry association.

The RFP for these projects is now available and the submission deadline is Friday, September 15th at 5:00pm Eastern time. We encourage our creative agency members to submit a proposal and for our other members to share widely with their networks. We look forward to getting started on these exciting projects!

News & Updates

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